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Population planning in Tabi'atstan
Government imposed family planning is carried out in Tabi'atstan, with two or three children being the recommended number for each family. This is to cover the replacement rate and create a steadily gradually growing population. Post Second World War policies In the immediate aftermath of the Second World War, the Tabi'atstani government encouraged citizens to have as many children as possible to replace losses in population resulting from the war. This aggressively pro-natalist policy continued until YEAR. Two or Three Child Policy The Two or Three Child Policy was started in 1979 as part of the twelfth five-year plan, with the Tabi'atstan Family Planning Association being created in 1980 to help support the implementation of the policy and provide support in regards to sexual and reproductive health in general for the population. The Tabi'atstani government states that the official family size goal is two or three children, with this population planning being carried out through various means. A tax on childlessness exists, currently set at 6% of income, that covers men aged 25 to 40 and married women aged 20 to 45. A tax rate reduction is given to mothers of one child (10%), whilst mothers of two or three children are given a larger reduction (25%). As Tabi'atstani wages are distributed with tax deducted, this effectively amounts to an increase in wages for those with children. The first to third children are given free schooling and healthcare, and maternity packages containing baby clothes and other necessities are provided free of charge to expectant and adoptive parents. However, the fourth child of a family is not given such free social welfare, with parents having to pay for education and healthcare. The maternity package is also not provided for the fourth child. Fourth children are at a disadvantage in terms of education not only because their education is not free, but also because they are given lower priority in school and university placements. Tabi'atstani parents with more than three children also risk being relocated to different housing in less desirable areas of a city or even to a different part of the country (this is made possible by the fact that housing in Tabi'atstan is government owned and the state allocates specific housing to each family unit). Furthermore, there are high delivery fees for the birth of a fourth-order or higher child, whilst such fees do not exist at all for the first to third children. If a child is the result of a rape, it does not count towards the number of children prior to the hypothetical fourth child that trigger these penalties. Similarly, children who have died are subsequently discounted from this number. There are also positive incentives for Tabi'atstani citizens not to have more than three children. Permission for the abortion of fourth and subsequent children is much easier to obtain. Despite the fact that the family size goal is for two or three children, contraception is available to all Tabi'atstani citizens for free, and is readily accessible with no restrictions being placed on obtaining such products. Citizens who are infertile are exempted from the tax on childlessness, and are generally considered a minor factor in Tabi'atstani population planning. However, access to assisted reproductive technology (ART) is given to all citizens, and is available in almost all provincial and municipal healthcare facilities. More basic ART services such as the provision of fertility medication is provided in some county and district healthcare providers. Sterilisation is not included as a major component of Tabi'atstani planning, and is in fact discouraged. Laws in Tabi'atstan also make it extremely difficult for citizens to undergo sterilisation. The Tabi'atstani government's policy towards sterilisation was somewhat succinctly and tersely described in a statement by ex-Minister for Health Parisa Taraneh Eftekhari, who argued: “One does not close an arms factory when the war is over, as that would leave one dangerously unprepared in case of a crisis. In like manner, the mechanisms of reproduction should not be compromised after family size targets have been achieved.” Propaganda campaigns have also been organised to support government family planning policies, with posters being created depicting sad and annoyed families with only one child and four or more children respectively. Posters often depict either two girls or two girls and one boy in an attempt to combat the cultural phenomenon of “trying for a boy” present in traditional Tabi'atstani society. Foeticide is not an issue in Tabi'atstan due to the fact that cultural perceptions on the value of male and female children has changed vastly from traditional norms since the formation of the USSRT, and due to the fact that the Two or Three Child Policy gives parents the chance to have children of both sexes. Similarly, selective abortion is not a major problem, and cases of the practice have been decreasing in number. The "four-two-one" problem where one adult child is left with having to provide support for his or her two parents and four grandparents which is associated with one-child policies has not arisen in Tabi'atstan, and neither has the issue of the indulgence of single children as "Little Emperors" who lack self-discipline and have no adaptive capabilities. See also *Health in Tabi'atstan Category:Tabi'atstan Category:Health in Tabi'atstan